Improvement in type-setting machines



2 Sheets-Sheet 1. W. A.'LORENZ.

TYPE SETTING MACHINE. $10,174,916. Patented. March 21,1876.

N FEI'ERS. PHDTO-LITHOGRAFHER WASHINGTON. D. C. v

2 SheetsSheet 2.

W. A. LORENZ.

' TYPE SETTING MACHINE. I v No.174,916. Patented March 21,1876.

N-PETERS, PHOTOJJTHOGRAPHER WASHMGTON. D C.

; UNITED. STATES WILLIAM A. LORENZ, on New YORK, ASSIGNOR To. SAMUEL Gammon.

BROOKLYN, AND'SAID GREEN ASSIGNORTO EDWARD IN. DIGKE OF NEW YORK, N. Y., TRUSTEE ,FOR HENRY BURR.

PATENT OF IC IMPROVEMENT IN TYPE-SETTING MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 174,916, dated March 21, 1876; application filed July 15, 1875. v

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM A. LORENZ, of New York Oity,.N. Y., have invented a new and useful Improvement in Type-Setting'Machines, of which the tion: I

My improvements are in that class of typesetting machines in which the types are sup plied to the machine in channels, each holding its own denomination oftypes, the types lying on each other side upon side in a vertical pile, and the lowest one being pushed out from beneath the pile by a plunger, and allowed to fall through a groove into a race or narrow channel as wide as the width of the types, which supports the types that drop into it, and along which they are driven by-soinc suitable mechanism.

The special object of 'my invention -is to overcome'the practical diflicultieswhich have been heretofore found in type-setting machines constructed upon the same general plan, and to make such a machine practically operative. v

i In the accompanying drawings, Figurel represents the operative parts of such a machine in section, in which T represents a pile or row of types in a channel of the case T P represents a plunger, which is driven against the end of the bottom type of the pile by the key K, pressed by the finger of the operator, through the lever L, the rod A, and the bell: crank B, and which is withdrawn, when the finger is removed, by a coiled spring, shown in the drawing at O, substantially in the manner described in the patent No. 16,947, to William H. Houston, dated March 31,1857, extended March 23, 1871.

The front end of this plunger must necessarily be thin enough to eject but one type at a time, which type maybe very thin. and if its whole body he made as thin as this end the 'plunger'will be weak and liable to break. In

my invention the main body of the plunger is made of a sufficient thickness and strength, and its front end is beveled, as shown in the drawing at Fig. 2, so that its point is thinner than its body. If the'types of any pile are thinner than the body of the plunger, the

following is a descripplui1ger,as it drives out the lowest letter, lifts the Whole pile above that lettera little, and as '-it is withdrawn allows the .pilev to drop.

As the type are pushed out by this plunger through the slots or grooves of the guide-bar H the faces of them are stopped by the covered roller E, and the bases of the types being unsupported, they fall, base down, over i the" bar W, against the glass front plate S,

and slide down oii'that plate, through conducting-channels in the back plate F, until they drop into the race J.

While the types are in the state of transition from their holding-channels to their'conducting-channels in the back plate, it is necessary to control them, and for that purpose a guide-bar, H, Figs. 1, 3, and 4, is arranged in the openspace in front ot' the foot of the type- I holding channels. This guide-bar has slots or grooves out through. it, as seen in Fig. 3, at

H each of which ishigh enough to permit .the passage of one of its appropriate types through it, and not higlienough to permit the passage of more that one at a time, so that the plunger cannot push out two types at once. This guide-bar is in sections, and each section is secured. by thumb-screws I to the frame of the machine. so that it can be readily removed and replaced. I

The glass front plate Sis made in sectlons, instead of in one piece, and each section is scoured independently of the others by clamps V, which are fixed to the plate F at convenient positions, so that eachgla ss section can be withdrawn at pleasure by sliding it out of its grooves. i

When the types fall into the race J, they are pushed along in it by a revolving cam, N, or other suitable means, so as to make room for succeeding types, and are ultimately forced into the stick M, which is arranged, as shown in Fig. 6, to receive the forming line of types, and to be removed when full, giving place to an empty one, without stopping the machine. This stick may'e'xtend in any direction, but it is preferable to curve the race,

as in Fig. 6, so that the stick may lie parallel with the front of the machine. ments will be found in the construction of the nson,

My improve;

' more ger P, in the removable guide-bar H, in :ovcrcd roller E, in the peculiur construcand arrangement of the conducting-chaos through which the types fall,inth e glass plate made in sections, and iii the gate;

formed by the plate R, in connection the front plate S, through which the s are deliveredto the race.

l6 of the great difficulties ery is, that the types, in their passage their holding-channels to themes, are e to be turned so thatithey will either;

to pass or will be turned one-quarter or ialt' way around while dropping, and, store, it is ecessary, in'a practical typeng machine, to guard the types"at all ts ot' theirmovernent from their holding: nels tothe race, so that they will be kept proper position. In myfmachinethat obhas been accomplished by deviceswhichf ipproprinte to the diflerent' stages ot opg on, and which successfully preventthe.

s from being turned. The first of these 30s isto be found in the construction of conducting-channels through f which the] s. fall; and it consists'inI making those, noting-channels of diflfereut depths, asiin I 7, corresponding with the thickuess of difl'erent types, which "my very much, result of this construction is, thiateach is confined in achannel which both in h and depth,.corresponds with the thick and mum of the type which' istqpass, 1gb it, so that, practically, a typecannot while it is passing through itschannel.

the accompanying drawings,ftheseconf ing-channels are shown'in elevation at 5, and in section at Fig; 7, whichfsection as through the grooved plate at theline I divide these conducting-channels mm I call leaders and confluents, the leaders lettered Z, andthe continents numbered 3, &c. The object of this arrangement group together the conducting-channels l number of types of nearly'the same;

ness, which maybe all} carried through eader. whose depth shall be as 'great ,as

hickness of the thickest type of thegronp,

iot great enough toallow the thinnest. The leaders Z maybe eight,,.

1m in it.

or less, in number, and converge at the it of the front plate, without each' rurn into the other. The confluentsfgenerally act with the'leaders in a curve, to which aader is a tangent, so that no type may quired to suddenly turn an angle in its ese leaders and these confluents are so iged that the heaviest type are grouped e outer and the lightest type at the inner ucting-channels The object of this group; 5 to compensate for the additional length increased atmospheric resistance of the grooves by passing the heaviest type lgh them, so that the type shall follow other at'the gate R practically in the hiclr has-been J untered in constructing type-setting ma 1 same order of succession as that in which the operator strikes the keys. lhave found that thisarrangementfis important in preventingthe types from'colliding at the gate; and thus arresting the action of the machine.- j

The secoud device for keeping the types in the proper position is required at the int of convergence of all the conducting-c annels which are delivering types,and where alllthe' type of varying thicknessmustpass through :1. common deliv'ery-passage,and where, therefore, it is necessary that the passage should "vary indepthas thetype vary ill thickness.

This result is produced by a movable plate or gate, R, whose normal position is parallel to I s l s imntnlstspfi h w smmt h ch is movable, so as to recede from or approach the glassfrontplate sufficiently to permit the thickest type to pass between the glass front ypifltiflild it,'and also to contract thepassagex so that the thinnesttype cannot tu i' lzil Pass: I ing.,,This' platejs "so, arranged that as .the' types;come udonwn,through the. conducting ielsltbemr bro ht s d s .wjntrol het'ore they have passedentirelyout of the 1. conducting-charmels,(so that no opportunity iisgiv en them for. fi ming. One or moredivisions of theback board ,F' is tapered to a .izs t keud xte slsl ews q erthi r s or i te.;., wl vfi' ventsthe trn sf mum s e he; P s b ween, i id-t e g as ro p as' in igs, l and 5, This plate B filisup an ev ni utheb tt m t-h a New nd is suspended bya rod, R,.to a pin, This pinismade adjustable to and from e front .ot:.t,he inachine in Ta slottedbraoket, ,50 as tocause the 'plate R to press more or. less by force of gravity, against thetypesgwhich are. passin etwee i a d the glass m p t e-v pr Qi salsoer l to he ck'of this plate, anditstensionisregulated ,hy the "set-screw Q ,th elohiect v of w'hich isto control t and adjust the pressure of the plate B, so that v whihait will permit the typ tolpass freely,

'underfit, it will'yet press upon them enough to prevent them v .from. turning. The spring also acts. morerapidly than gravity, and thereforerestores the. plate .to'its positiomafterit has beenpresseil backliy a thicker type,- more quickly than gravity would do it. The setscrew Q preventst he plate R from being thrown back tfnrtherthan necessary for the p a e o it i t k s y w h. may e. in

the font onwhieh the inachinejis working.

, Itis apparent that this apparatus must very delicate and rapid in its action, because the only force which operates to move it is "thatderi'ved from the falling of the typedown the inclined glass front plate, and because the varying thicknesses of types follow, each other fsofluickly that the interval between them, 7 during which the gate must adjust itself to the constantly-'chan gin g cor dit'ious, isrscarcely appreciable.

Other diflicultiesovercome are those which result from pushing the types out of the hold-.

ing-channels rapidly by the plunger P against a fixed stop. When that stop is of metal or other hard substance, there is danger that the type will be bruised against it; and when its surface is of a softer material, as leather, a

'insures their falling.

The arrangement of the glass front plate in sections 1 also find a very important improvement upon its original construction in asingle sheet. The time of the falling of the type is an essential factor in the result, and thechan acter of the surface upon which the type slide in their descent materially affects it. When the glass front plate is in one piece, it is very difficult either to make or keep it true, so that uniformity of action is not secured.- It is often necessary to remove this glass frontplate, either to clean its inner surface or to clear out the conducting-channels, and in replacing it there is danger of springing or breaking it. My improvement consistsin dividing this plate into sections, and so forming and securing them that they may be slid in and withdrawn from grooves or clamps fixed upon the face of the back plate, Fig. 8. In the drawing, V represents these clamps which support the glass front plate, and which secure the uniformity of the surface upon which the types slide.

- These clamps are secured to the portions of in g the motion of the type when ejected, substantially as described.

3. In combination with the grooved back plate, the glass front plate made in sections, each removable independently, substantially as described. v

4. In combination with the type-case, the removable guide-bar H, secured by thumbscrews, or an analogous device, substantially as described.

5. In combination with a back plate having grooves of varying depth, the type arranged,

so that the heavier type shall travel through the longer grooves, and the lighter through the shorter ones, substantially as described. I

6. The combination of the pendulum suspender and the adjustable spring for the purpose of controlling and making sensitive the vibrations of the gate, as the varying thicknesses of type pass through it, substantially as described.

WILLIAM A. LORENZ. Witnesses:

JOHN MCCRONE, SAMUEL W. GREEN. 

